1930s An equestrian-inspired line of bags, trunks, gloves, shoes and belts is launched to resounding success leading Guccio Gucci to create his unique horse bit icon. The first store in Rome opens on Via Condotti.
1940s As an alternative to leather, which was in short supply as a result of the League of Nations embargo against Italy’s then Fascist dictatorship, Gucci resorts to the use of linen, jute and bamboo for its new Bamboo Bag, which subsequently becomes one of many Gucci’s iconic products.
1950s Gucci revamps its equestrian line with some green-red-green stripes, derived from a traditional saddle girth. They are now a recognisable hallmark of the brand. The marque’s first Milan store opens on Via Montenapoleone.
In 1953, Gucci unveils a new loafer with a metal horse bit. It also opens its first U.S. store, located in the Savoy Plaza Hotel in New York. In the same year, Guccio Gucci dies at the age of 72 passing on the legacy to his sons Aldo, Vasco, Ugo and Rodolfo who take over the family business.
1960s The intertwined G’s are registered as a trademark and Gucci expands by moving to bigger premises in New York (next to the St. Regis Hotel), with new stores opening in London, Paris, Palm Beach and Beverly Hills. The bag subsequently known as ‘The Jackie O’ is launched; around this time the GG logo is applied to canvas and used for bags, small leather goods, luggage and the first pieces of clothing. A ‘Flora’ scarf print is designed for Princess Grace of Monaco.
1970s Gucci hits new heights of fashionability – a new NY store dedicated to clothing is opened at 699 Fifth Avenue, while 689 Fifth Avenue is opened to specialise in shoes, bags, luggage and accessories. Gucci stores also spread to Tokyo and Hong Kong. Furthermore, the first Gucci perfume is created.
1980s The Gucci accessory collection is introduced. The Gucci ready-to-wear collection parades for the first time at the Florentine fashion shows, playing heavily on the Flora print. However, by the mid 1980s a dark shadow reigns over the brand as a mixture of bad management style, family disputes, an early death, a murder case and a tax evasion prison sentence put the company into decline. Finally, Investcorp, an Anglo-Arabian Bahrain-based company purchases 50 per cent of Gucci shares.
1990s The American designer Tom Ford is hired to oversee women’s ready-to-wear. Then in 1993, Maurizio Gucci transfers his shares to Investcorp, ending the family’s involvement in the firm. A year later, Tom Ford is appointed creative director and his new ‘Jet Set’ glamour proves a massive hit. Meanwhile, the new investors promoted the American-educated Domenico De Sole from the position of family attorney to president of Gucci America in 1994 and then chief executive in 1995.
2000s Ford and De Sole were instrumental in the decision of the Gucci Group to acquire Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche, Bottega Veneta, Boucheron, Sergio Rossi, and part-ownership of Stella McCartney, Alexander McQueen and Balenciaga. By 2001 Ford and De Sole shared the responsibility for major business decisions, while Ford concurrently directed design at Yves Saint Laurent as well as at Gucci. In 2003, the French conglomerate Pinault-Printemps-Redouté (PPR), gains ownership of 60 percent of the Gucci Group’s stock. Both Domenico De Sole and Tom Ford leave in 2004. The last spring collection under the direction of Ford and De Sole was a massive critical and commercial success. Frida Giannini, a former bag designer for Fendi, who had joined Gucci’s accessory department as part of Ford’s team is appointed as the sole creative director of Gucci subsequent to her inventive re-launch of the Flora print as a bag collection.
2010s The brand’s 90th anniversary falls in 2011 and to honour the occasion, Frida Giannini reveals the ‘Fiat 500 by Gucci’ as well as the ‘Riva Aquariva by Gucci’.
